We already knew that online practices are shaping the future of the nonprofit sector! And with the Covid-19 pandemic, it quickly shifted much of the fundraising efforts to the digital world.
But even now as people start to gather together again, nonprofit online fundraising practices are still in full swing.
While theyāre not replacing traditional fundraising methods (and we donāt think they ever totally will!), they are super beneficial towards helping you grow your nonprofit organization.
So weāve come up with some major nonprofit online fundraising best practices in this post!
Nonprofit Online Fundraising Best Practice #1: Email Marketing is Not Dead!
Did you know? According to the Global Trends in Giving Report, ā26% of online donors say email is the tool that inspires them most.ā Thatās ahead of social media, your website, and print marketing.
And! From the same report, 63% of donors worldwide say regular email communication about the impact of their donation is what inspires them most to become a recurring donor.
Yep, even though we get aggravated with the red number that pops up on our Mail app, the proof is in the pudding.
Email marketing has one of the highest ROIs out of all the nonprofit marketing endeavors! So donāt skimp on it.
That being said, you donāt want to only send out emails that just ask for an online donation. Instead, follow these email marketing best practices:
Nonprofit Email Marketing Best Practices:
- Create an entire email campaign for your nonprofit, rather than just sending random emails asking solely for a donation.
- Send out a monthly newsletter that showcases what your mission is up to.
- Highlight volunteer stories so your supporters can see whoās doing amazing work for the cause.
- Show your email list exactly what their money is doing and where itās going. Be transparent with your nonprofit endeavors!
- And every so often, incorporate nonprofit online fundraising practices like a āone-day donation campaignā or a promotion of your monthly donation program.
Nonprofit Online Fundraising Best Practice #2: Make Sure Your Donation Pages Are Easy to Use
Your donation page is where the magic happens. So it needs to have all of the right information on it to help your donors know and trust in your nonprofit. So how do you do that?
Follow these donation page best practices!
Online Donation Page Best Practices:
- Make sure the design of the nonprofit page is simple. Donāt overload it with too many graphics. Donāt make the fonts too hard to read. Keep the design simple!
- But create a branded donation page so they know exactly who theyāre donating to. You can do this with a lot of online donation platforms available on the market!
- The copywriting needs to be clear and concise so your readers clearly understand your nonprofit mission and what youāre asking for.
- Make sure they know where to click. Youād be amazed at how often this is overlooked! And how quickly it causes potential supporters to back out because they donāt know what to do next.
- Be clear in what theyāre giving. Donāt take part in any tricks here! Otherwise, youāll lose the trust of your donors.
- Offer your donors the option to pay in different forms. This opens the door for people who have different credit cards or different preferences for online transactions. You can even offer them the option to pay in cryptocurrency!
Not sure on how to get started with that? Thatās okay! Our sister site, Charity How To, has a free webinar to explain more about cryptocurrency and how to use it in your nonprofit.
Check Out the FREE Webinar on Cryptocurrency Donations at CharityHowTo!
Nonprofit Online Fundraising Best Practice #3: Donāt Forget to Increase Awareness for Your Monthly Giving Program
Utilizing your monthly nonprofit online fundraising program is a sure-fire way to meet your monthly goals time after time!
In fact, donations from monthly gifts are on the rise. From the Benchmarks Report in 2021, recurring monthly donations increased by a whopping 25%.
The good news is that certain online donation platforms let your donors opt-in to recurring gifts on your donation page. And some others allow you to make specific monthly donor pages!
But remember. The phrase, āif you build it, they will comeā doesnāt actually apply. So once youāve got your monthly donation page set up, be sure to promote it!
Hereās how:
Promoting Your Monthly Giving Program Page Best Practices:
- Send it out regularly to your email list. Include it in your nonprofit monthly newsletters and any other fundraising email campaigns you send out.
- Social media is a great way to promote your nonprofit monthly giving program. While you donāt want to post about it every single time you post new content, reminding your followers of your program is necessary. Otherwise, theyāll forget and you wonāt see any new donors come through!
- Have a clear link on your nonprofit website to your monthly giving program, too! When traffic hits your site, they should be able to see the link as an option for them.
- Use your Google Ads Grant to promote your monthly giving program, as well.
Nonprofit Online Fundraising Best Practice #4: Use Social Media Fundraising Tools
Facebook Fundraising Tools is one of those nonprofit online fundraising tools that just canāt be overlooked. In fact, over $5 billion has been donated to nonprofits through Facebook Fundraising Tools.
When you set up your nonprofit account, youāll essentially have a mini online donation platform directly on Facebook. Youāll get a nonprofit fundraisers page, a donate button for your page and all of your posts, and on-Facebook donation ads.
Plus, when someone donates through your Facebook page, youāll get their contact information like their name and email address. And thatās an excellent way to track your nonprofit donor data to better understand your supporters!
Once youāve signed up for Facebook Fundraising Tools, youāll easily be able to sign up for Instagramās own nonprofit program. And with it, youāll be able to add a āSupportā button to your profile, add ādonateā stickers to your stories, create fundraisers, and even host virtual events through Instagram Live.
If you already have a social media marketing strategy planned out, or if youāre in the process of planning it out, be sure to include this in there. And be sure to check out our post on the best social media tools to help you with your strategy!
Nonprofit Online Fundraising Best Practice #5: Apply for the Google Ads Grant Program
Donāt forget! Thereās money on the table with the Google Ads Grant program. You can snag up to $10,000 per month for your nonprofit. And even if youāre not eligible for the full $10,000, you may not even need that amount to meet your nonprofit goals!
We have an easy guide on Google Ads Grants that also lists the requirements for the program!
Nonprofit Online Fundraising Best Practice #6: Optimize for Mobile Giving
Double-check that all of your nonprofit online fundraising efforts are optimized for mobile giving. Whether itās your email newsletters, your online donation pages, or even your website, make sure theyāre ready for mobile donors.
According to Nonprofit Source, 25% of donors complete their donations on mobile devices. And we think that number is only going to rise given how easy it is to handle daily tasks on your phone!
It looks like nonprofit online fundraising is here to stay, friend! Which means itās time we do what we can to make sure weāre following the best practices for it.
These 6 nonprofit online fundraising strategies will help you meet your donation goals month after month!
Want more related to nonprofit online fundraising? Check out these posts!
The Top 30 Statistics You Need to Know About Digital and Online Fundraising for Nonprofits
The 5 Most Valuable Nonprofit Digital Marketing and Fundraising Tools
The 8 Best Online Donation Platforms for Nonprofits to Boost Your Income